Vivian L. Huang

Vivian L. Huang is an Associate Professor specializing in race, gender, and performance studies at the Department of Communication Studies, San Francisco State University. Their work interrogates racial aesthetics, queer forms of obfuscation, and intersections of militarism and intimacy. Huang holds a B.A. in English and Theater & Performance Studies from UC Berkeley, and an M.A./Ph.D. in Performance Studies from NYU.

Research focuses on decolonial performance practices, queer Asian American visibility, and critiques of US militarism. Recent writings include Becoming Meat (2025), analyzing canine subjectivity and queer militarism, and the award-winning monograph Surface Relations (2022), which was honored with the Duke University Press Scholars of Color First Book Prize.

• Awards: Mellon Emerging Faculty Leaders Award, Hellman Foundation support, Crompton-Noll Essay Prize
• Prior Position: Assistant Professor at Williams College (Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)
• Key Publications: GLQ, Journal of Asian American Studies, Frieze Magazine

Advising emphasizes feminist and queer methodologies, with mentorship supported by interdisciplinary grants. Current research explores transspecies ethics and decolonial performance archives.